Chair with a removable upholstery cover



March 7, s, B HENDRICKSON CHAIR WITH A REMOVABLE UPHOLSTERY COVER 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 15, 1958 3 40 INVENTOR.

4 56 SEVERIN B. HENDRICKSON March 7, 1961 s. B. HENDRICKSON I 7 '7 2,973,806

CHAIR WITH A REMOVABLE UPHOLSTERY COVER Filed Aug. 15, 1958 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. SEVERIN B. HENDRICKSON 1 ,5 4, CAM M ATTOR N EYS s. B. HENDRICKSON 2,973,806

CHAIR WITH A REMOVABLE UPHOLSTERY COVER 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 March 7, 1961 Filed Aug. 15, 1958 INVENTOR. N DR l C KSON CAM+M [ATTORNEYS United States Patent 2,973,806 CHAIR WITH A REMOVABLE UPHOLSTERY COVER Filed Aug. 15, 1958, Ser. No. 755,193

6 Claims. (Cl. 155-182) This invention relates to upholstered furniture and more particularly to a chair with a removable upholstery cover.

In hotels, oflices, and other commercial establishments where large numbers of upholstered chairs are used, it is necessary to clean the upholstery at frequent intervals due to the constant wear which these chairs undergo. In the past, there have been numerous problems connected with satisfactorily cleaning upholstered furniture. It is very expensive to remove ordinary upholstery, which is tacked onto a furniture frame, each time the upholstery requires cleaning. Also, it is not entirely satisfactory to clean the upholstery while in place, since it is impossible to do a thorough cleaning job. Slip covers solve these problems of removal for cleaning, but they do not present the neat appearance which is desirable. It should be understood, of course, that these same problems are presented in private houses as well as in hotels, although the problems are not quite so acute where there is less frequent use of the furniture.

It is an object of my invention to provide upholstery covering for chairs which can be removed easily and quickly for cleaning and can be put back in place with equal facility. It is another object of my invention to provide a chair with a removable upholstery cover which is indistinguishable in exterior appearance from conventional permanently fastened upholstery coverings. It is a further object of my invention to provide a chair on which the upholstery covering of a given size can be readily exchanged for another covering of the same size. The latter object will permit one chair frame to be used with a variety of covers which will suit different decorating schemes. It

will also permit the removal of one cover for cleaning and immediate replacement by another so that one chair frame can be used constantly.

In the accomplishment of these and other objects of my invention in a preferred embodiment thereof, I employ a padded chair frame whose elements form a seat portion and a continuous back and arms portion. A covering of any desired upholstery material is fitted snugly around the back and arms portion of the seat with inside edges of the material extending down between the back and arms portion and the seat portion. These inside edges and the edges hanging down the outside are joined around the undersurface of the back and arms portions by a slide fastener, such as a zipper. The seat portion is covered with the same type of upholstery material, and the outer edges of the cover extend downward between the back and arms portions and the seat portion. These edges are turned back to form loops, and a draw string passing through the loops holds the cover tightly over the seat portion of the frame. A further requirement of this embodiment is a cushion lying upon the seat portion. The cushion can be covered with the same upholstery material as the other portions of the chair, and a slide fastener can be used in a conventional manner to allow easy removal of the cushion. If a cushion is used, the convenience of cleaning the upholstery is enhanced because the cushion prevents the cover of the seat portion from becoming soiled. The seat portion cover with its draw string can then be left in place if it is simply desired to remove the covers of the back and arms portion and the cushion for cleaning without putting the same chair frame back in use immediately with new upholstery.

It is a feature of my invention that the use of an upholstery cover with a slide fastener permits easy and fast removal and replacement of the cover. It is another feature that the use of the slide fastener around the under surface of the chair frame makes fastening means invisible in ordinary use and makes the appearance of the cover identical with conventional tacked upholstery.

It is a further feature of my invention that any number of covers can be made in the same size to fit the same chair frame, permitting the substitution of covers when desired. In the preferred embodiment of my invention, the upholstered appearance of the chair is preserved by the use of resilient padding on the frame which accommodates any slight variation in the size of various upholstery covers. These and other objects and features of my invention will best be understood and appreciated from the following description of a preferred embodiment thereof, selected for purposes of illustration, and shown in the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a chair showing a removable upholstery cover in place;

Fig. 2 is a plan view from the bottom of a chair with a removable upholstery cover in place;

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a portion of a chair with a removable upholstery cover in place taken along lines 3-3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a portion of a chair with a removable upholstery cover in place taken along lines 4--4 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 5 is a plan view from the bottom of a chair without legs in place, with the frame partially broken away, and the upholstery cover partially removed for purposes of clarity.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a chair showing an upholstery cover in the process of being removed.

Ina preferred embodiment of my invention, as shown in Fig. 1, an upholstery cover 10 is fitted snugly onto the back and arms portion (indicated at 12) of a chair. Another cover 14 is fitted to the seat portion (indicated at 16). In this embodiment, a third cover 18 is fitted to a cushion (indicated at 20). Legs 22 support the chair.

In Fig. 2, the zipper fastening means 24 is shown joining the bottom edges of the back and arms cover 10. The seat cover 14 is held in place by a draw string 26, the ends of which are joined by a knot 28. The legs 22 are attached at a pivot 30 to braces 32, which in turn are mounted within an inner U-shaped frame 34. The frame 34 and the front cross bar 36 together form the basis of the seat portion id of the chair. Flat metal strips 38 and coil springs 49 are attached to the frame 34 and cross bar 36. An extension 42 of the front panel of the back and arms cover 10 is secured to the seat cover 14 by a snap fastener 44.

Fig. 3, a crosssecti0n of one of the sides, shows how the cover it) is stretched over padding 46. The padding 46 is attached to panels 48, which form an inner side and back wall. Panels 5%) form an outer side and back wall. These panels 48 and Si) are fastened to an outer U-shaped frame member 52 which is shown in Fig. 3 in a partial cross section. The seat cover 14 is stretched over padding 54 and around the inner frame 34. As indicated at 56, the edge of the seat cover 14 is turned back to forma loop through which the draw string 26 passes.

In Fig. 4, a cross sectional view similar to Fig. 3 is shown, with the addition of a middle frame member 58 which extends across the inside of the outer frame 52. between the outer frame 52 and the inner frame 34. In.

the removal of the cover 10, the slide fastener 24 is unfastened, as shown for one side of a chair in Fig. 5. Also the snap fasteners 44- are unfastened, and the inside portion of the covet-10 can then be pulled upwards from between the frame members 52, 5S and 34. The entire covercan then be simply lifted off the chair as shown in Fig. 6. In order to remove the seat cover 14, the knot 28 is untied and the drawstring 26 is removed from the segments 60, 62, 64, and 66 (shown in Fig. 5) of the cover 14. The drawstring need not be removed from the segment 68 of the cover 14. The cover 14 can then be removed by pulling the segments 60, 62, 64, and 66 upwards from between the frame members 52, 58, and 34; To replace the covers 10 and 14, the foregoing steps are reversed.

Certain minor variations of this preferred embodiment will be apparent to those skilled in the art. For instance, the shape of the chair may be varied, and the same principle of slide fasteners for an upholstery cover may be applied to couches and other articles of upholstered furniture other than chairs. The same shape of chair could be attached to the chairs framework, and different legs' could be attached to the chairs framework. Therefore, it is not my intention to confine the invention to the precise form herein shown, but rather to limit it in terms of the appended claims.

Having thus described and disclosed a preferred embodiment of my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patents of the United States is:

1. An upholstered chair comprising a frame, said frame consisting of an upper U-shaped element and a lower U-shaped element joined at spaced intervals by vertical elements andformihg acontinuous back and arms portion, and an inner U-shaped element lying inside and in the same plane as said lower U-shaped element and forming a seatportion of said frame, a first removable upholstery cover on said continuous back and arms portion of said frame, edges of said first removable cover forming an opening around the bottom edge of said back and arms portion under said lower U-shaped element of said frame, slide fasteners releasably engaging said edges forming an opening, a second removable upholstery cover on said seat portion of said frame, and means for releasably fastening said second cover on said seat portion.

2. The chair defined in claim 1 further characterized by a cushion resting upon said seat portion of said frame, a third removable cover on said cushion, edges forming an opening in the rear portion of said cover, and a slide fastener releasably engaging said edges.

3. An upholstered chair comprising a frame, said frame consisting of an upper U-shaped element and a lower U-shaped element joined at spaced intervals by vertical elements and forming a continuous back and arms portion, and an inner U-shaped element lying inside and in the same plane as said lower U-shaped element and forming a seat portion of said frame, padding on said back and arms portion and said seat portion, a first removable upholstery cover on said continuous back and arms portion of said frame, edges of said first removable cover forming an opening therein around the bottom edge of said back and arms portion under said lower U-shaped element of said frame, slide fasteners releasably engaging said edges forming an opening, a second removable upholstery cover stretched over and extending under said inner U-shaped element, andmeans consisting of a drawstring for releasably fastening said second cover on said seat portion.

4. The chair defined in claim 3 further characterized by a cushion resting upon said seat portion of said frame, a third removable cover on said cushion, edges forming an opening in the rear portion of said cover, and a slide fastener releasably engaging said edges.

5. A chair comprising a base; a seat frame mounted on said base; a back rest supported by said seat frame, connected thereto only at spaced points, and defining between itself and said seat frame narrow openings in the intervals between said spaced points; padding on said seat frame and said back rest; an upholstery covering for said seat frame; marginal edges on said covering constructed and arranged to coincide with and pass through said narrow openings; means operatively associated with said marginal edges for securing said marginal edges beneath said seat frame; a second upholstery covering, said second covering constructed and arranged to fit closely around said back rest; inside marginal edges on said second covering adapted to pass through said narrow openings; outside marginal edges on said second covering adapted to extend downwardly and around the lower portions of said back rest; and means consisting of slide fasteners for releasably joining said inside and outside marginal edges.

6. An upholstered chair comprising a frame, said frame comprising: an upper U-shaped element and a lower U-shaped element, joined at spaced intervals by vertical elements and forming a continuous back and arms portion, and an inner U-shaped element connected thereto only at spaced points, said inner U-shaped element lying inside and in the same plane as said lower U-shaped element and forming a seat portion of said frame defining between itself and said back and arms portion narrow openings in the intervals between said spaced points; adding on said back and arms portion and on said seat portion a first removable upholstery cover on said continuous back and arms portion of said frame; edges on said first removable cover forming an opening around the bottom edge of said back and arms portion .under said lower U-shaped element of said frame; means operatively associated with said edges forming the said opening for releasably securing said edges beneath said seat frame; a second removable upholstery cover stretched over and extending under said inner U-shaped element; inside marginal edges on said second cover adapted to pass through said above narrow openings; outside marginal edges on said second cover adapted to extend downwardly and around the lower portions of said back rest; means for joining said inside and outside marginal edges; and means for releasably fastening said cover on said seat portion.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

